


Burning Up

by TheAverageOne11



Series: Zalex Week 2k20 [1]
Category: 13 Reasons Why (TV)
Genre: Alex takes care of Zach, Caretaker Alex Standall, Caretaking, Fluff, Friendship/Love, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Sick Character, Sick Zach Dempsey, Sickfic, zalexweek2k20
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-07-06
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:20:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,976
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25075264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheAverageOne11/pseuds/TheAverageOne11
Summary: Alex receives an odd message from Zach, who hasn't turned up for school yet. Worried, he skips school and finds him sick.Having no one else at home, Alex takes care of him.
Relationships: Zach Dempsey/Alex Standall
Series: Zalex Week 2k20 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1816006
Comments: 2
Kudos: 52
Collections: Zalex Week 2k20





	Burning Up

**Author's Note:**

> Zalex Week! Yayy!  
> This is my entry for Day 1 Hurt/Comfort, it's basically a sickfic.  
> If you want to participate, but haven't been informed about Zalex Week yet, here's the link to the blog with all the details:  
> https://zalexweek2k20.tumblr.com/

Classes had only scarcely begun and Alex was already quite bored, having to listen to his history teacher 'teach' for the first time in awhile; the man usually preferred to give them a historical movie or documentary to watch and get a good nap in, rather than bothering to teach any of them anything, which makes it all the more annoying. It was a rather dull Tuesday already and Alex could hardly wait for the weekend. That's when his phone vibrated and he turned his head down to see a message from Zach.

Zach hadn't turned up for school that day, which wasn't too out of character for him. Still, Alex got a very bad feeling when he saw the notification pop up and he couldn't really understand why. He always liked talking to Zach a lot, which was a very weird thing to say to himself, so he usually glossed for it. His phone vibrated again with another message from Zach. Opening the text messages, that tight feeling in his chest only got worse.

Alex responded quickly and Zach had opened the message immediately as well, however, it took him a suspicious amount of time to type out his next two messages, which was odd considering they were only four words. Alex was probably thinking too much into it, yet still, he didn't know why, but he was worried. He sighed and started putting away his notebook and textbook in his bag. Zach may have said after school, but between the monotonous history teacher and the rest of the classes, Alex wouldn't pay any attention with Zach on the back of his mind. The whole class looked at him as he got up with his backpack, and the history teacher looked at him, confused.

"Sorry, have to go. Emergency." With that, Alex left the classroom before he had any time to question him. Exiting the school, it finally dawned on him that he didn't have a car, which made getting to Zach's a lot more bothersome. still, Crestmont was a relatively small town, so Alex decided to walk. Zach's house was up the hill where the rich people lived, though his was a bit more isolated. It wasn't close by his standards, but he would still be there in a 30 minute walk.

When Alex finally made it to Zach's house - or mansion, would be the more appropriate word, he was relieved to see the door was unlocked, so he walked in. The first thing he noticed is how unnaturally quiet it was. But Alex didn't think too much on it, since, even though it was an enormous house, besides Zach, the only people who lived there were his mother and his sister, both of which weren't in town. Still, it was shocking that there wasn't a single maid anywhere. Alex has actually never been to Zach's house, mostly because of his strict mother, so anytime they hung out together had been at Bryce's and his house a few times.

Having said that, he had absolutely no idea where Zach's room was. He assumed it was somewhere on the upper floor so he got up the stairs. The first door he opened led to an empty room, presumably a guest bedroom; the second door was a very fancy and rather spacious bathroom; opening the third revealed a room with pink walls and lots of dolls and posters, undoubtedly May's room. When he opened the fourth room, he found a messy room, with socks scattered all over the floor, books messily placed on the desks and a bed with blankets falling out of it. On the bed was Zach, only he was sweating and panting. He looked distressed at the sound of the door opening, but when he saw Alex he relaxed, ever so slightly.

"Alex...? What are you doing here? I didn't want you skipping school for me." Zach said, his voice faint, clearly trying to be upset with him, but not having the strength to. Alex's heart dropped. Zach was sick.

"Zach, why didn't you tell me you were sick?!" Alex said, barely managing to calm his tone before the words came out of his mouth. The last thing Zach needed was someone yelling at him.

"I'm not sick, it's probably just a headache." Zach tried to laugh it off, as if Alex was overreacting. Alex sighed in exasperation and made his way to the bed. Zach tried to sit up and rest his back on the headboard, but failed. Alex shook his head, telling him not to move as he sat down on the bed beside him.

Zach's hair was disheveled and his eyes were glittering as he looked at Alex. He looked small and vulnerable, for the first time ever, and Alex felt like he needed to protect him; He also looked beautiful, Alex realized. As he reached to touch Zach's forehead to see if he had a fever, he stopped himself at the sight of the messy stands of hair on the other boy's forehead. Before he could register what he was doing, he brushed them out of the way, which earned him a strange noise from Zach, almost like a whimper. _God..._ Zach was looking him straight in the eyes and he looked so fragile, his face flushed, though Alex couldn't tell if it was because of Alex brushing his hair or because he's sick. He cleared his throat and placed his palm on Zach's forehead, not caring how sweaty it was, and sure enough, he was burning up.

"Jesus Zach... You have a fever. You're too hot." Alex said, wincing internally when he heard the words coming out of his mouth, already knowing Zach was going to take advantage of them.

"Hot enough that you'd wanna go out with me or just hot?" Zalex chuckled faintly.

"That's not funny Zach, why didn't you call your mom?" Alex groaned, trying to forget what Zach asked him. Zach had started flirting him recently and it made Alex uncomfortable; not because he didn't like it, but rather because he liked it too much. Alex supposed it was just what being close friends with Zach was like, so he tried not to dwell on it too much.

"I wanted to, but May is having a really good time in London... My mom is so crazy she might actually come back just for me and scold me on how I can't be by myself for a day." Zach explained, fidgeting with his fingers.

"Yeah, you're probably right. No worries, you have me after all." He said warmly and Zach actually smiled. "Let me guess, you wanted some paracetamol...or ibuprofen?" Alex asked, remembering how his mother treated his fevers.

"If it's not too much trouble..." With that, Alex stormed out of his room, surprising even himself with how quickly he was down the stairs. As he was about to leave the house, he realized that Zach probably hadn't got out of bed all day, maybe even longer. He went to the kitchen and poured him a glass of water and went up the stairs again, entering his room. Zach was surprised to see him again so soon.

"Drink this. You have to stay hydrated." Alex said, placing the glass of water on the nightstand. Zach smiled, whispering a thank you. "I will be right back." He said, heading for the door again.

"There's a pharmacy just down the street. My wallet is on the desk." Zach said, pointing towards his desk with the stacked books and notebooks.

"Cool, mine is in my bag." Alex said, grinning at Zach's annoyed face before he left the room. The other boy never liked it when Alex paid for things while he was with him.

The pharmacy was easy enough to find and Alex had more than enough money to pay for the medication. As soon as he got it he hurried on back to Zach's. Entering his room, Zach practically beamed at him, though Alex was disappointed to find that he still didn't drink his glass of water. So he decided to take matters into his own hands, as he grabbed the paracetamol and the glass of water

"Here, take this." Alex said, handing him the paracetamol. Zach took it without question as he tried to sit up. Alex put his hand on the back of Zach's head, helping him perch up a little. Still holding the back of his head with his left hand, Alex brought the glass of water closer to Zach's mouth, helping him drink it. After taking it, Zach laid down on the bed again and looked at Alex affectionately.

"Thank you." Zach said, smiling, and Alex was pretty sure that his face was so red it looked like he was the one with the fever. But then, the other boy's faces scrunched up. "How much did it cost you?" asked Zach.

"Not much." Alex replied coyly, trying to dismiss the question. Zach however, wasn't having it. He sighed, moving to get out of bed - and his wallet no doubt, but Alex gently pressed him down on the bed again before he could get up.

"Not so fast... Sorry Zach, I'm the stronger one right now. You need rest, don't worry about a couple of dollars. It's what friends are for." Zach let out a breath of defeat and relaxed onto the bed. Realizing that he wasn't under any blankets, Alex took one of the thinner ones and covered Zach with it, snuggling the other boy into it. It was weird how vulnerable Zach seemed, yet he looked at Alex so intensely. It sent tingles through his body.

"Do I at least get to be fed soup?" Zach pouted at him. _He's enjoying this the little rascal._

"Fine, I will make you some soup right now." Alex said with a grin, admitting defeat to Zach's adorable pout. As he left Zach's room he heard him yelling 'Don't burn the kitchen', which somehow succeeded in making Alex very nervous about making some goddamn soup. He knows Karen would burn him alive for that. It was his first time at Zach's house and he was already pretty familiar with it. He managed to find the ingredients almost instantly, and their kitchen was basically fully stocked on everything.

Having made the soup, he was even more nervous about taking it up the stairs, knowing that a single stain on Miss Dempsey's perfect carpets would earn him a one way ticket to hell. When Zach saw him coming in, he actually clapped playfully, as if he was a child being brought his favorite snack. Alex sat down next to him on the bed, as Zach slowly sat up, resting his back on the headboard. Alex took a spoonful of soup and blew at it gently, cooling it down until its edible, before taking it to Zach's mouth.

Alex blushed as he fed Zach the soup, spoonful by spoonful. Zach didn't always avoid eye contact with him as he was being fed either, which made it even more awkward for Alex. Zach smiled at him through out it, which Alex desperately tried not to think about. By the time they were done, Zach started feeling really sleepy. It occurred to Alex then, that maybe Zach hadn't slept all night, which would have been extremely bad. Zach fell asleep about an hour later, which was a breath of fresh air for Alex to relax a little bit. He texted his mom, telling her he would be sleeping over at a friend's house and then took the desk chair, dragging it closer to the bed before turning on the TV and watching a movie, practically with no volume at all.

Zach woke and fell asleep again a lot, though Alex himself hadn't really started feeling sleepy until nightfall. He doesn't remember falling asleep, but he remembers waking up to Zach shivering at around 1 am. He got off the uncomfortable chair quickly, immediately noticing how stiff his back was and the dull pain in his neck. He ignored them however, for his priority was making Zach more comfortable and ease his shivering. He remembers whenever he shivered, his mother made sure he was as warm as possible, so Alex covered with as many blankets as he could find in the room, tucking Zach in neatly. After a few moments, the shaking stopped and his breathing calmed, deep into a relaxing sleep. Alex sighed in relief, admiring how adorable Zach looked tucked under four blankets and relaxed, whispering to himself as he was dreaming. Alex couldn't help but to lean down and press a gentle kiss to Zach's forehead, not caring if he got sick himself, and went back to sit in his chair, keeping a close eye on Zach until he fell accidentally fell asleep on the same uncomfortable chair in the same uncomfortable position.

School the next day was awful for Alex. He didn't sleep much and he had to get up earlier to he could walk to school, not wanting to wake Zach up to tell him where his car keys were. Skipping two days in a row wasn't really a good idea for him, so he had to endure the day. He only had his textbooks and notebooks for the classes he had the previous day, but that wasn't much of an issue luckily. When school was over, Alex practically ran all the way to Zach's. He looked much better, starting to sweat again, which was a good sign. Besides bringing him glasses of water, cleaning his sweaty face and feeding him, Alex didn't really do much that day. Although, he did start reading a book to the other boy at one point, to which Zach seemed surprisingly happy about. Zach begged him to go home and get some rest, but Alex insisted that he stayed and kept an eye on him at least one more night. Alex woke up a few times in the night, checking on Zach even though he was fine, but this time Alex slept in the guest bedroom so he doesn't break his neck from that annoying chair.

Going into Thursday, he still had the same things in his bag as Tuesday, but at least he was a lot more rested. His mom did text him though, demanding that he came home. He tried telling her Zach needed him, but ultimately she threatened to call Zach's mom if Zach really needed help, so he had to oblige. He still checked up on Zach immediately after school though, earning himself a smile from Zach, who was already feeling good enough to start walking around. He accompanied Zach to the shower, standing outside the bathroom in case Zach passed out or something. Unfortunately that came back to haunt him when Zach stepped out of the bathroom with nothing but a towel on him, water dripping from his damp hair. Alex gulped, his cheeks flushing before he turned around and went to the guest bedroom. Alex told him to call him if he needed anything, promising him he would back the first thing after school tomorrow. Zach chuckled, giving Alex a look he didn't quite understand, before telling him to go home and not worry his mom.

Friday morning it was business as usual, though Alex could hardly pay attention to anything in school. Zach didn't text that he needed anything, just sent him a bunch of memes, which Alex supposed was a good thing. When he arrived at his house after school, he was really happy, because of a couple of reasons. One, it was Friday, so no more school for the next 2 days, and two, Zach looked almost completely healthy. He was still sleeping when Alex came by, which was surprising, but his breathing sounded a lot better and his body temperature seemed to be almost normal.

Alex picked up Overwatch and started playing, disabling all sound so Zach could rest up properly. It made playing a nightmare, but Alex didn't really mind. About an hour later, he was surprised to hear Zach's voice suddenly speak up.

"Dude... Their widow is wrecking your shit." Alex almost jumped out of the bed. Zach had apparently been up for awhile, long enough to see him getting killed over and over. Alex smiled when he turned around and saw him, the color returned to his face.

"Good morning you lazy ass. Looking extremely energized, I'm relieved" Alex said, admiring the fresh look on Zach's face.

"I owe it all to you." said Zach, scooting little closer. Alex snorted, which almost seemed to offend Zach. "Seriously dude, I'm taking you out this weekend, just us, my treat." said Zach with a warm and affectionate smile, patting his shoulder gently.

"Just...us?" Alex asked, his face was heating up so much he almost thought he was catching a fever now.Suddenly he felt Zach's face drop.

"Well, I mean, not like a - you know - date or whatever... Just..." Zach was looking at him intensely through out the whole nervous rambling, and he must have caught the disappointment in Alex's eyes because his demeanor suddenly changed again. "I mean, unless - you would be... into... that...?" The darker haired boy pressed, looking at Alex expectantly. Alex's jaw dropped. This was not the way he pictured the day going. He completely forgot about the game he was playing, probably having already been kicked out for being AFK.

"I - yeah. I mean yes." Alex said, with a nervous smile, scanning the taller boy's face for his reaction, whose cheeks turned pink and his lips forming into a smile. Alex wanted to lean in and kiss him, but he knew that Zach wouldn't let him because he still could be sick. It was fine though, Zach Dempsey will be worth the wait.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!  
> Any feedback is greatly appreciated :D


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